
Glass. 
Book. 



lm;i.si:.\tki> l!V 



SHAIDOW OF 




THE CIO 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS; 

AN ALLEGORY. 

BY THE REV. W. ADAMS, M. A. 



FOURTH AMERICAN EDITION, 
WITH ENGRAVINGS FROM ORIGINAL DESIGNS. 
BT CHAPMAN 



NEW-YORK: 
GENERAL PROT. EPISCOPAL S. S. UNION, 

DANIEL DANA Jr. AGENT. 

Depository 2(1 John Street.. 

IS49. 




Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1844, by 
John W Mitchell, (as Treasurer of the General Prostestant 
Episcopal Sunday School Union) in the Office of the Clerk of the 
United States District Court for the Southern District of New- 
York. 



Bequest 

Albert Adsit Clemong 

Aug. 24, 1938 

(Not available for exohans* 



PREFACE 

TO THE AMERICAN EDITION. 

The following beautiful Allegory is reprinted 
without alteration, from the second London Edition, 
and something, it is deemed, has been added to its 
original value in the elegant and appropriate illustra- 
tions, the designs for which were furnished by our 
distinguished native artist, John G. Chapman, and 
executed by Howland. Brothers, of New York. 



Padue-y & Russell, Printers. 



<£f)e Sljafooto of tlje (Eross. 



CHAPTER I. 

Old friends, old scenes, will lovelier be. 
As more of Heaven in each we see - 
Some softening gleam of love and prayer 
Shall dawn on every cross and care. 



.... .-: 




thick darkness 
|$H" was spread over 
I; the earth, and 
I as I stood on 
j| the top of a lof- 
ty mountain, the 
only object that 
I could see was 

A4 



y SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

the sun, which had risen in the far east 
with a wonderful glory. It was as a 
ball of clear and living fire ; and yet so 
soft and chastened was its ray, that, 
while I gazed, my eye was not dazzled, 
and I felt I should like to look upon it 
for ever. Presently, as it shone upon 
the mists which rested on the earth, 
they became tremulous with light, and 
in a moment they floated by, and a 
scene of life and beauty was opened tc 
my view. 

I saw a spot of ground, so rich and 
fertile, that it might well be called a 
garden ; — the sweetest flowers were 
growing wild in the fields, and the 
very pathways appeared to sparkle with 
rubies and emeralds ; there were, too, 
the most luxuriant orchards, and cool 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 9 

groves of orange trees and myrtles, and 
the breeze of the morning was play- 
ing among their branches. Now, as 
I watched the butterflies that fluttered 
over the flowers, and the lambs sport- 
ing on the smooth grass, and as I list- 
ened to the song of the nightingales in 
the woods, I fancied it was some scene 
of enchantment which I saw, it was so 
very full of happiness and life. Every 
where, at the extremity of the view, my 
eye rested on a clear narrow stream : 
I could trace neither mountain from 
which it rose, nor ocean into which it 
feU ; but it glided round and round in 
an endless circular course, forming as it 
were a border of silver to that lovely 
garden on which the sun was shining. 
The morning light ever kept adding 



10 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

fresh beauty to each tree and flower 
on which it fell, but the brighest and 
clearest rays were those which were re- 
flected by this narrow stream ; and at 
this I wondered the rather, because, on 
the other side of the ring of water, all 
was still wrapt in a thick and gloomy 
fog, and though I gazed long and ear- 
nestly, I saw nothing. 

Young and lovely children were con- 
tinually crossing the narrow stream ; 
there was no other way of escaping 
from the land of darkness to the land 
of light. Their garments became white 
as snow by their passage through the 
water, and sparkled with a dazzling 
brightness as the sun first shone upon 
them ; I observed, too, that each child, 
as he entered the garden, held a little 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 11 

cross in his hand. Now, when I reflect- 
ed how many millions might still be 
wandering in the dark and gloomy re- 
gion beyond, on whom the glorious sun 
would never shed its cheering warmth, 
I could not help thinking how happy 
the children were to have found thus 
early the narrow stream, and I said in 
my heart, Surely this lovely garden was 
made for them, and they will live in it 
for ever. 

While I was musing thus, it seemed 
that, in answer, a still soft Voice came 
floating on the breeze, and said, " It is 
indeed for such children as these that 
the sun is shining, and for them that 
the mists have been cleared away, but 
none of the beautiful things in the gar- 
den belong to them ; they are waiting 



12 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

here as strangers, till their Father shall 
summon them home ; and when they 
go hence, they can take nothing away 
with them but the little crosses in their 
hands, and the white garments which 
they wear." " Who, then, are these 
children?" I asked, "and what is the 
name of the garden ? and when they 
are taken from it, whither will they 
go?" And the Voice said, "The chil- 
dren are sons of a mighty King, and 
the garden is called the Garden of tile 
^liatJOto Of tJie €rOSS; but no one can 
tell whither each child will go when 
he is taken away — it will depend on 
how far he escapes the dangers of the 
garden. If they carelessly lose their 
crosses, or so stain their beautiful gar- 
ments, that they can be made white no 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 13 

more, they will be thought unworthy 
of the presence of the great King, and 
will be hid in an outer darkness, more 
thick and terrible than that which they 
have just left. But if, when they go 
away, the crosses are still in their 
hands, and they so far keep themselves 
clean that the King may recognise them 
for His own children, then will their 
garments be washed until they become 
more shining white than snow, and they 
will be taken to a brighter and happier 
land, in which they will live with their 
Father for ever." 

But I understood not what the Voice 
meant by the dangers of the garden, 
and I wondered, too, that it should 
speak to me of a brighter and happier 
land ; for I thought within myself, that 



14 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

no land could be more beautiful than 
that on which I gazed, and no sun more 
glorious than that which was shining 
there. And the Voice again answered 
my thoughts, and said, "It is indeed 
true, that no sun surpasseth in glory 
that which is shining on the land en- 
circled by the silver stream ; but were 
it not for the light so resting upon it, 
there is nothing to be desired in the gar- 
den itself. At one time every thing, not 
only herej but in the country around, 
was very good — there was no mist or 
darkness then ; but now an enemy of 
the King has corrupted all. The very 
air the children breathe is wont to sully 
their white garments, and each delight 
of the garden is full of hidden danger 
and deceit. Whiie every thing appears 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 15 

to the eye so beautiful and innocent, 
there is, in truth, a poison lurking in 
each fruit and flower ; cunning serpents 
are hiding in the grass ; snares and 
stumbling-blocks innumerable are placed 
in the broad ways that look so bright 
and smooth ; and even in the groves 
of myrtle roaring lions are wandering 
about, anxious to tear the children that 
come thither, and to stain their white 
garments with blood." 

And when I heard this, I wept bit- 
terly for the poor children, whom I had 
thought so happy before, and I said, 
" Oh wretched children, thus to be 
placed in a garden so full of dangers, 
and to be tempted by fruits and flowers 
which you dare not gather ! Surely there 
is not one of you who will not at last 



16 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

imbibe some secret poison, or fall into 
some dreadful snare, or be stung by a 
serpent, or torn by a lion ; and so you 
will be prevented from entering that 
better country which your Father has 
prepared for you." And the Voice said, 
" There is not one of the King's children 
who may not dwell in peace and happi- 
ness in the garden. Not only is their 
Father Himself ever present with them, 
though they cannot see Him, but He has 
given to each a talisman, which will en- 
able them to live here in security, and 
even to enjoy the fruits and flowers until 
it is His good pleasure to call them to 
Himself. You see that the sun is shin- 
ing brightly and gloriously in the east ; 
you see, too, that each little one has 
been provided with a cross : — so long 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 17 

then as the cross is so held that the 
rays of the sun fall upon it, and cast 
a shadow upon the surrounding objects, 
they will remain safe and happy in their 
garden ; for every fruit on which the 
mark of the cross is seen, may be tasted 
of without fear, and each path may be 
trodden in safety on which its shadow 
rests. 

"But will not," I asked, "the hands 
of the children become wearied by hold- 
ing the cross, and their eyes grow dim 
while they watch the shadows ?" And 
the Voice replied, " Their hands would 
indeed soon become weary, and their 
eyes grow dim, if their sight or their 
strength were their own ; but these are 
among the number of those precious 
gifts, that each child, as he crossed the 



18 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

stream, received from his Father. He 
is ever at hand to watch over them ; 
and, so long as they are really anxious 
to be guided by the cross, He will not 
suffer their sight or strength to fail. 
Nay more, He has appointed means, 
by which they themselves may seek 
the renewal of these gifts day after 
day, and hour after hour." 

When I heard this I wept no more, 
but I thought how good and kind that 
Father must be, who took such care 
of each little child. From this time I 
ceased to watch the trees and the flow- 
ers, or even the bright ring of water 
that kept flowing round the garden ; 
for I felt deeply interested about the 
King's children, and I fancied it would 
be very beautiful to see them throwing 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 19 

shadows from their little crosses, and 
so living unhurt in the garden of the 
Shadow of the Cross. 

Now, I had expected that, as there 
was no difference in the crosses them- 
selves, so, too, would there be none in 
the shadows, and that every child who 
held the cross would make the same use 
of it. But I soon found that, though 
the crosses were indeed all alike, there 
was very great variety in the images 
which they cast. There were some 
which were very dark and gloomy, and 
some, on the contrary, were so fair and 
soft, that they were more beautiful to 
look upon than the surrounding light ; 
some fell fixed and steadfast, some faint 
and wavering ; some fell in clusters, and 
some alone. There was also a very 



20 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

great difference in the way in which 
the children held their crosses : some 
merely raised them on high, and then 
walked quietly wherever the shadow 
fell ; some kept twisting them back- 
wards and forwards, as though it were 
a. work of much difficulty to form the 
shadow ; and some, methought, even 
when the image was most distinct, were 
unable to see it. Many, too, there 
were who hid their crosses, and only 
used them now and then, and I knew 
that those poor children were in conti- 
nual danger ; and some, too, had thrown 
them away altogether, and I feared that 
they would be lost. At length my eye 
grew weaiy with the confusion of the 
scene, and I resolved to fix it steadily 
on some one child, and to watch its 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 



21 



progress through the garden. One little 
girl there was amidst a group of chil- 
dren, with features so pure and lovely, 
that, when she had once attracted my 



,- 



ft 



NO^. 




attention, I could easily distinguish her 
from the rest. The name of " Inno- 
cence " was written on her forehead ; 
and, from the whiteness of her gar- 
ments, I thought that she must have 



22 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

entered very lately into the garden. I 
watched her as she played with her 
companions in the fields, and I loved 
to see her stop with them to taste the 
fruits or gather the flowers by the way; 
for I observed that she chose not the 
greenest paths, nor the ripest fruits, nor 
the fairest flowers, but only those on 
which the image of her cross was seen. 
Nay, neither fruit nor flower seemed to 
have any charms for her, unless the 
cross had thrown its shadow there ; and 
I wondered not that it was so, for the 
more I gazed, the more soft and beau- 
tiful seemed the outline that it traced. 
The child was always happy ; her sole 
pleasure was in her little cross and 
the shadows it formed ; fall where they 
would, she was sure to follow them. I 



SHADOW 01 


1 THE CROSS. 


'■ || 
23 


saw, too, that she 


taught her friend: 


, to 


seek the shadows 


also, and 


when 


the 


mark of her 


cross 


and theirs 


might 


be 


discerned on 


the same object, 


then ^ 


vas 


she happiest 


of all 








And as I 


gazed, behold ! 


a snow- 



white dove was resting on the cross, 
and the form of the little one began 
already to fade from my view ; her fea- 
tures became less bright, though not 
less pure, than they were before, and 
I knew that young Innocence, with her 
garments still white, was passing away 
from the garden. In a little while her 
companions were weeping, and the child 
was gone. I did not weep, for I felt she 
had been taken away to that brighter 
and happier land of which the Voice had 
spoken ; yet long after we had ceased 



24 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

to see her, I fancied she was still present 
in the garden, and, as she had been 
wont to do, was holding her little cross 
in the light of the sun ; for its shadow 
continued to play around all the objects 
she had loved ; I could trace it not only 
on the faces of her friends, but on the 
flowers she had gathered, and the very 
pathways she had trod-. I observed, 
too, that these images became brighter 
and more distinct from the tears that 
fell upon them, and images from other 
crosses kept clustering around them, and 
I thought, if the beautiful child were 
indeed still looking on the garden, how 
happy she must be that the crosses of 
those who wept for her were thus blend- 
ed with her own. 



CHAPTER II 

When with dear friends sweet tali I hold. 
And all the flowers of life unfold ; 
Let not my heart within me burn 
Except in all I Thee discern 



hen Innocence 
had thus early 
been called a- 
way from the 
garden, I se- 
lected one of the 
little group of 
mourners, whom 
1 next resolved to watch. He was a 
very beautiful boy, and had been one 
of the favourite friends of Innocence, 




26 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

and when I first observed him, was cry- 
ing bitterly for his loss. But he soon 
dried his tears, and as I looked on his 
clear and open forehead, the name of 
"Mirth" was written there. Long after 
he had ceased weeping, I could see that 
he had not forgotten his companion, for 
he continued to play in the same field in 
which Innocence had left him, and af- 
fection for his former playmate ever led 
him to choose those flowers on which 
the shadow of her cross was lingering 
still. 

While he remained there, I knew 
that the boy was safe from danger ; but 
afterwards, when he began to wander 
to other parts of the garden, I grew 
alarmed lest some evil might befa.1 him; 
for, though he grasped his own cross 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 27 

firmly in his hand, so quick and lively 
was his step, that I feared he might 
soon be tempted to move beyond its 
shadow. However, I was beginning to 
hope there was no good reason for my 
alarm ; for, though he gathered more 
abundantly than Innocence had done 
of the flowers that were by the way, J 
observed that he never touched them 
until the shadow of his cross had rested 
upon them ; and if there were any on 
which it did not fall, he passed them 
by. But before long it seemed that his 
eye was attracted by a beautiful bed of 
roses and violets that grew on a little 
hill, at the foot of which he was walk- 
ing : I saw him hold his cross for a 
moment between tnem and the sun, and 
he quite laughed for joy as he caught a 



28 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

glimpse of its shadow there ; he bound- 
ed lightly forward, and, intending 'to 
gather a lovely nosegay, began in haste 
to scramble up the hill. Now, this I 
perceived with sorrow, for I was afraid 
the little fellow had not observed that 
there were many roses there on which 
no part of the shadow fell ; and I feared 
lest in his eagerness he should seize one 
of them, and, by doing so, I knew not 
what risk he might incur. There was 
good cause for my fear. The child, 
breathless with his scramble up the hill, 
stretched out his hand and plucked the 
finest rose that he saw ; it was one of 
those on which no shadow had fallen, 
and he had scarce held it a moment, 
when a wasp, that had concealed itself 
among the leaves, crawled out and stung 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 29 

him on the finger : the poor boy scream- 
ed with pain, for the sting of the wasp 
was unlike any thing he had felt before. 
He hastily dashed the flower on the 
ground ; but one leaf, I observed, was 
blown back by the wind, and rested 
on his clothes : Mirth saw it also, and 
brushed it away ; but, when it was 
gone, there was a stain on those gar- 
ments which had been so white before. 
It was but a very little spot, and, as 
the tears trickled down upon it, grew 
so faint, that it could hardly be dis- 
cerned at all ; but still the spot was 
there. The smart, however, that the 
sting caused was of no long continu- 
ance, and in a short time little Mirth 
was going merrily on his way, as though 
no accident had happened. 



30 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

By and by, as he was walking by a 
bright path across a field, one of his 
former companions perceived him, and 
ran over the green to meet him : I could 
see that he shook Mirth warmly by the 
hand, and persuaded him that for a lit- 
tle while they should amuse themselves 
together. But I was grieved that the 
friend of Innocence should join company 
with the child, for there was many a soil 
on his white garments, and there was 
no cross in his hand, and the name of 
"Wayward" was written on his brow. 
I thought, too, that Mirth looked shock- 
ed when first he met him, and I heard 
him ask after his cross ; but Wayward 
laughed, and told him it was so trou- 
blesome to keep it always in his hand, 
that he now carried it in his clothes. 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 31 

He said, however, that he never forgot 
to take it out when there were any dif- 
ficulties in the way ; but in the green 
fields and smooth paths he needed not 
its shadow. 

Now, methought, the stains on his 
clothes proved that, without the cross, 
neither the greenest fields nor the 
smoothest paths were safe ; but it would 
seem that Mirth did not observe them, 
for his mind appeared at ease, when 
he found Wayward had not thrown 
away the cross ; and the two boys walk- 
ed on together. Little Mirth still, how- 
ever, kept his own cross in his hand, 
and its shadow ever fell clear and dis- 
tinct on the bright path he trod ; while 
Wayward walked heedlessly along the 
soft turf by his side, and laughed at the 



32 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

caution of his companion. But I soon 
observed that Mirth was growing weary 
of the narrow way, and tired of placing 
his footsteps exactly in the print of the 
cross, and that by little and little he 
deviated from it ; he ventured first close 
by the side of the grass, and then just 
to tread on its edge, and so he walked 
nearer to his companion. Now they 
had not gone far, when, at the point 
where the turf looked most soft and in- 
viting, they fell into swampy ground, 
and in an instant the green miry water 
rose above their ankles. Poor Mirth, 
directly he felt it, leaped back upon 
the road, for it was at no great distance ; 
but before he could reach it his gar- 
ments were already splashed, and there 
was a sad shade of green all around 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 33 

their border. Wayward fell deeper into 
the marsh than Mirth, because he had 
been walking farther from the path ; 
but, when he had forced his way out, 
he treated his misfortune lightly, and 
scarce stopped a moment to wipe the 
dirt from his clothes ; nor did I wonder 
at this, for they were so stained before, 
that the splashes of the green mud could 
hardly be seen on them at all ; but it 
made me feel the more pity for Mirth, 
as he looked sadly at his own stains ; 
and I thought how foolish a thing it 
was, for a child, still clad in raiment of 
white, to walk with one whose garments 
were so defiled. 

It seemed, however, that Mirth 
thought not of that, for he still al- 
lowed Wayward to accompany him ; 



34 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

nay, in a little while I almost fancied 
he began to look discontented at the 
whiteness of his clothes, for the fear 
of spoiling them often forced him to 
pick his way over stones with care, 
while his companion could walk heed- 
lessly through the mud. Alas ! if it 
were so, the silly child had not much 
longer such cause for discontent ; for 
a beautiful butterfly in a neighbouring 
field caught the attention of Wayward, 
and in a moment away he ran, calling 
to his companion to follow ; and I saw 
that, for the first time, Mirth joined 
in the pursuit without consulting his 
cross. Now, I have no doubt the boys 
thought they would have to go but a 
very little way before they gained pos- 
session of their prize, — for I too fancied 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 



35 



so at first ; but, as they came near, the 
butterfly opened its bright wings to the 
sun, and fluttered away, settling first on 
one flower, then on another, and ever, 





as the children stretched out their hands 
to take it, just eluded their grasp. A 
long and wearisome chase it led them 
in the end. At first they went merrily 
through the green fields ; but after- 



36 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

wards, as they grew more eager in the 
pursuit, and the bright butterfly tempted 
them on, they climbed steep hills, and 
scrambled down into the valleys be- 
neath ; they ran through brooks, leaped 
over ditches, and broke through hedges 
in their way, and yet the provoking 
insect was no nearer than before. And 
I said, " Oh that Mirth had tried whe- 
ther the shadow of his cross would rest 
on its glittering wings, before he began 
thus hastily to follow it !" for many a 
splash of mud had fallen upon him in 
the eagerness of the pursuit, and his 
little hands were so scratched with 
thorns, that in some parts they had 
sprinkled his clothes with blood. 

At length they came to a smooth 
grassy plain, at the border of which 



- SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 37 

was a lovely grove of myrtles. The 
butterfly flew high in the air towards 
the distant trees, for there was neither 
plant nor flower in the plain itself. 
Now, I observed that Mirth had out- 
stripped Wayward in the chase ; and 
as he ran heedlessly on, gazing upwards 
towards the butterfly, his foot struck 
against a stone concealed in the long 
grass, and he was thrown violently to 
the ground. The careless child was well 
nigh stunned by the fall ; and when he 
recovered his feet, he trembled exceed- 
ingly, and the mark of the green grass 
was deeply imprinted on his clothes ; 
yet I was glad that the accident made 
him grasp his little cross, which before 
he had well nigh forgotten, the more 
firmly in his hand. Just as his com- 



38 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

panion joined him, he held it thought- 
fully towards the sun ; and when he 
saw that its image was not reflected 
on the wood, but on a hard dull path, 
leading in an opposite direction, he at 
once turned aside from the beautiful 
butterfly which he had so long been 
following. 

Wayward, too, seemed a little fright- 
ened by his companion's fall, for he also 
took out his cross ; and when its dim 
shadow fell on the same hard, dull path, 
he too relinquished the pursuit of the 
butterfly, and accompanied Mirth. So 
the two boys walked on, sadly and 
silently, together ; but Mirth limped a 
little as he went, from the pain of his 
fall. Very glad I was that they had 
not ventured to enter the wood ; for, 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 39 

though they saw them not, I could see 
the bright eyes of a serpent gleaming 
from beneath the myrtle on which the 
butterfly was resting. He seemed to be 
waiting anxiously for the approach of 
the children, and 1 doubt not there was 
poison in his fang. 

Now, I have said that the road by 
which Mirth and Wayward left the 
grove of myrtles was dull and hard ; 
for I had by this time discovered that, 
soft and beautiful as every thing looked 
in the distance, there were not only 
some paths in the garden deceitful and 
dangerous, but others hard and dull. It 
led them by many a withered leaf and 
faded flower ; and each leaf and flower 
was watered by the tears of Mirth, for 
his eyes were ever fixed downward 



40 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

upon the ground : he was as one who 
was unconscious whither he was walk- 
ing, and whose only care was so to 
measure each step that it might fall 
exactly in the shadow before him. 
Wayward, too, for a little while, look- 
ed downward also, and step by step 
trod in the same path with his com- 
panion : but, when they had gone on 
for some time in safety, from the force 
of habit he left off carrying his cross 
in his hand, and concealed it as he had 
done before ; and then he soon grew 
weaxy of the dullness of the road, and 
longed to turn aside to some of the 
pleasant paths on the right hand or on 
the left. He appeared to me, however, 
to be half afraid of wandering alone ; 
for I heard him coaxing Mirth to leave 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 41 

off watching those gloomy images, and 
to come and join with him in some 
merry game, saying that, by doing so, 
he would the sooner forget the effects 
of his fall. But Mirth still walked on 
in the same disconsolate wa}^, with his 
eyes fixed upon the ground. His heart 
was then indeed too full of heaviness 
to suffer him to think of play at all ; 
yet, perhaps, he might not have been 
able to resist very long the entreaties 
of Wayward, had it not so happened 
that the boys did not much further 
continue their walk together. 

A sudden turn in the dull road 
brought them to one of those fields 
over which in happier times Mirth had 
often loved to ramble with Innocence ; 
and the shadow of his cross rested full 



42 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

on a faded lily, which had been sown 
and watered by the hands of his for- 
mer friend. Here the poor little fellow 
paused, and sobbed as though his very 
heart would break; I too felt very sor- 
rowful ; for my mind went back to the 
lovely scene when the two children had 
been playing together in the garden, 
and Mirth had been taught by Inno- 
cence to find pleasure in the cross. I 
remembered how happy they had both 
looked in their shining raiment of white, 
and how beautiful were the first holy 
images which fell on the objects around 
them ; and, above all, I recollected the 
hour when the dove had settled so 
peacefully on the cross of her who was 
taken, while she was fading from my 
view : and then, as I gazed upon the 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 43 

one who had been left, and saw how 
his garments since then had been stain- 
ed by many a dark and filthy spot, the 
bitter thought came upon me, whether, 
if his friend still looked upon the gar- 
den, she would recognise him now, and 
whether, if Mirth were called away, 
he would be received in that better 
country to which Innocence was gone. 
Such ^thoughts, also, seemed to force 
themselves on the mind of Mirth ; for 
he knelt down by the lily to which the 
shadow had led him, and, as the tears 
chased each other down his cheeks, and 
fell on the stains, I could hear him 
murmur, {' Oh, purge me with hyssop, 
and I shall be clean ; wash me, and 
I shall be whiter than snow !" Then 
I knew he was speaking to the kind 



44 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

Father, who was ever present among 
His children in the garden ; and I re- 
membered how the Voice had told me 
that there were means by which the 
sight and strength of the children might 
be renewed. Presently I saw him bend- 
low and gaze earnestly on the faded 
flower ; and while the big tear fell upon 
it, methought that his eye became less 
dim, and there was a gleam of hope 
and gladness on his face, as though he 
could again trace upon the leaves the 
light and lovely outline of the cross of 
Innocence. Then I also, in the midst 
of my sorrow, was glad ; and I felt that 
Mirth was really happier as he wept 
over the lily of his friend, than he had 
been while, in the thoughtlessness of 
his heart, he was chasing the painted 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 45 

butterfly on the green. Moreover, as 
I watched him, I saw him kiss his little 
cross and press it to his heart ; and I 
wondered not that he did so, for I knew 
it was that little cross, and that alone, 
which had freed him from all his perils ; 
for, without it, he must have been bitten 
by the serpent in the myrtle grove ; and 
had he not trod in its shadow along 
the hard dull road, he would not have 
been guided to the flower of Innocence 
at last. 



m^ : 






CHAPTER III 

But if, indeed, with reckless faith. 
We trust the nattering voice. 
Which, whispers, ' Take thy fill ere death. 
Indulge thee and rejoice - " 

Too surely, every, setting day, 
Some lost delight we mourn , 

The flowers all die along our way, 
Till we, too, die forlorn. 





he tears were 
gj fast rising in 

T|| my eyes as I 
;J turned them a- 
| way from the 
|| kneeling child, 






so affecting was 
the scene ; but 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 47 

for the present I watched him no more, 
for about him my mind was now at 
rest ; but I felt fearfully anxious to 
trace the course of his companion .who 
neglected the cross. Wayward had not 
seen the shadow resting on the flower, 
but had walked carelessly through the 
field ; otherwise his thoughts also might 
have gone back to the time when he 
played with Innocence, and he would 
perhaps have wept together with his 
companion. He had advanced some 
distance before he observed that Mirth 
had ceased to accompany him ; but as 
soon as he perceived it he was alarm- 
ed to find himself alone ; for, though 
he cared but little for the cross him- 
self, he had felt some sort of safety 
from being near to one who trod within 



48 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

its shadow. He first looked anxiously 
around, and then in a hurried mannei 
began to retrace his steps. I had no 
doubt that his intention was to rejoin 
his companion ; but, short as was the 
distance back, in his haste he managed 
to lose the way, and got into a path 
that led him farther and farther from 
the field in which Mirth was kneeling. 
I could plainly hear his companion's 
voice calling to him to returnj and I 
saw that Wayward heard it also, for 
he continually paused and listened, as 
though he wished to ascertain the di- 
rection of the distant sound. And then 
the unhappy boy would shout loudly in 
reply, and turning to the right hand or 
the left, begin to hurry along some new 
track ; but each time that he started 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 49 

again, he made some fresh error in the 
way, and as I watched him I knew 
that it would be so, for his cross was 
not in his hand. 

In a little time he had got quite to a 
different part of the garden from that in 
which he had parted with Mirth. He 
saw there a pretty group of children, 
whom he was very anxious to join ; but 
they were frightened when they ob- 
served that he had no cross, and one 
of them cried out that his dirty hands 
would soil the whiteness of their gar- 
ments ; so they refused to let him take 
part in their play. He tried one or two 
other groups, but some hurried away as 
he approached, and others shrunk back 
from his touch, until at last he found a 
party of boys who had no crosses, and 



50 SHADOW OP THE CROSS. 

whose clothes were more filthy than 
his own. These boys welcomed -him 
gladly, and he began to leap and run 
with them. They all laughed loudly, 
and tried to be merry ; but no shadow 
fell on the ground which they trod, and 
they soon grew weary of laughter itself. 
So their game terminated in a quarrel, 
and that brought on blows, which added 
fresh stains to the clothes of these un- 
happy children. Even Wayward grew 
shocked at the scene which he now 
witnessed, and, hastening away from 
his companions, again began to ramble 
through the garden alone. 

He now seemed to be wandering to 
and fro without any object, as a child 
that was blind ; but I saw that he 
plenteously gathered of the flowers, and 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 51 

ate of the fruits that he found ; and 
as he did so his garments became more 
and more discoloured, and his coun- 
tenance pale and sickly, and his manner 
full of restlessness and languor, so that 
I was very greatly alarmed, for I could 
not but remember how the Voice had 
said that there was poison in the garden. 
I saw, too, that Wayward had become 
not only sickly but wretched also ; he 
no longer could derive enjoyment from 
any thing he tasted or touched, but was 
suspicious of them all. Sometimes I 
thought he looked anxiously about him 
for the shadow of the cross ; and } T et, 
whether it were from indolence, or from 
the force of habit, or from some fatal 
delusion, I cannot tell, but the cross 
itself he did not hold. 



52 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

At length in his wanderings he came 
to a long high wall, on the Western 
side of which there was a tree loaded 
with nectarines, riper and more beauti- 
ful than any he had before seen. Now, 
at first he seemed as though he were 
going to turn away, for, though he held 
not his cross, he knew at once that the 
bright sun shining in the East could 
shed no image there ; and yet he lin- 
gered and looked wistfully at the fruit ; 
and as he looked he perceived one ga- 
thering from the tree, whose garments 
were yet white, and whose cross was 
in her hand. I also looked at her that 
gathered the fruit, and I could read 
the name of " Selfdeceit" imprinted 
upon her brow ; and I saw there was 
something foul and horrible even in 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 53 

the very whiteness of her garments, and 
that wan and ghastly were the images 
that fell from her cross. Now, I be- 
gan to wonder how those images were 
formed, and behold ! there gleamed in 
the air behind her a dark blue flame ; 
then I discovered that there were false 
meteor lights in the garden of the Sha- 
dow of the Cross : doubtless they were 
placed there by the enemy of the King, 
in order to tempt the children to taste 
the poisonous fruits ; but I shuddered 
exceedingly when I saw that the cross 
might thus be converted into an instru- 
ment of destruction : yet so unlike were 
the false images to those formed by the 
clear and brilliant sun in the East, that 
they could deceive none but the eye 
that had been long a stranger to the 



54 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

real image, and the heart that was 
anxious to believe them true. ■ Even 
Wayward, as he drew nigh, trembled, 
and felt there was something unnatural 
in the shadows that fell on the Western 
wall ; but when Selfdeceit offered him 
one of the ripest nectarines, and point- 
ed triumphantly to the pale outline that 
might be traced upon "it, he was tempt- 
ed, and he took it and did eat. While 
he was eating, some of the juice oozed 
out from the fruit (for it was very ripe) 
and fell upon his clothes : it marked 
them with a stain which, though they 
were already much discoloured, was 
of a deeper crimson than any I had 
seen before. Wayward threw down the 
remainder of the nectarine, and was 
hastening away, but Selfdeceit called 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 55 

to him to stop, and said that she could 
very easily remove the stain. So Way- 
ward stopped, and Selfdeceit took a sub- 
stance which seemed to me like chalk, 
and rubbed it over the spot on which 
the juice had fallen, and not that spot 
only, but over the whole of the gar- 
ments of her companion, until she had 
produced upon them the same foul and 
horrible whiteness that I had remarked 
upon her own. When it was done, I 
thought that Wayward tried to smile, 
as though he again were clean ; but the 
smile passed away in a sigh, for in Ins 
inmost heart he knew that the stains 
were hidden but not removed, and that 
the all-seeing eye of his Father could 
perceive them still. 

Yet he did not fly from Selfdeceit 



56 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

as he ought to have done, but still 
continued in her company, eating the 
fruits on which the false images fell, 
and allowing the treacherous chalk to 
be rubbed upon his clothes. The chil- 
dren did not walk very long together ; 
but during that time (he appearance of 
Wayward became so altered, that be- 
fore they parted I doubt whether Mirth 
could have recognised him again : the 
form emaciated by disease, the feverish 
and uncertain step, the hectic flush on 
his sallow cheek, and the wildness in 
his bloodshot eye, had left but little of 
the gay, though careless, child who had 
run so lightly after the butterfly on the 
green. Yet, great as was the change in 
his appearance owing to the poison on 
which he lived, the change that had 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 57 

taken place in his dress was greater 
still ; for his garments were more dis- 
guised by the strange whiteness caused 
by the chalk, than they could have been 
by the darkest stain. He was, how- 
ever, fast becoming accustomed to its 
use, for it was astonishing how many 
accidents befell Wayward and Selfde- 
ceit as they moved along; — sometimes 
they slipped, and rolled into the mire ; 
sometimes they were tripped up, and fell 
on the swampy grass ; sometimes they 
stained themselves with fruit ; some- 
times noxious reptiles would crawl over 
their clothes ; and sometimes foul spots, 
as in a leprosy, would suddenly break 
out upon them, without any cause which 
they could discern : and on each of 
these occasions, Selfdeceit would take 



58 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

out her chalk, and apply it to her com- 
panion's garments and her own. 

In this wretched way they kept walk- 
ing side by side, until they came to 
the borders of a great wood, and there 
Selfdeceit bade her companion go first, 
saying that she would follow ; but 
Wayward drew back, and refused to 
advance farther before he had first con- 
sulted his cross. I do not know why 
at that particular moment he should 
have paused ; it may be that it merely 
proceeded from his usual dislike to go 
first ; or it may be he was frightened 
by a deep and angry sound, even as the 
roaring of a lion, which issued from the 
wood, and yet his ears had now grown 
so dull, that I cannot tell whether he 
heard it at all ; and I think it most 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 59 

likely that he only delayed, because the 
scene brought back to his memory the 
hour in which he had stood with Mirth, 
at the entrance of the myrtle-grove, 
when the holy image had warned them 
both to turn aside. But be the cause 
what it may, he stood still, and drew 
his long-neglected cross from his bosom. 
It was, indeed, a scene that caused 
my heart to beat high with interest. 
Wayward was standing a little in ad- 
vance of Selfdeceit, and one step more 
would have brought him within the bor- 
ders of the wood ; and, as he raised his 
cross with a trembling hand, I could 
see a smile of mockery pass over the 
countenance of his companion. In a 
moment the meteor lights were flicker- 
ing in the air around them, and a crowd 



60 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

of confused and ghastly shadows fell at 
the feet of the bewildered boy. He had 
suffered his eyes to become so very dim, 
that it was in vain he now endeavoured 
to distinguish the true image from the 
false : but I observecf that from that 
very uncertainty he hesitated whether 
to advance ; and I believe at last he 
would have turned aside, had not Self- 
deceit with her own hand lighted a 
torch behind him, which threw one 
long deep shadow in the direction of 
the forest. Then Wayward ventured 
to move forward ; but scarce had he 
made the first step, when there was a 
laugh as of fiends in the air, and be- 
hold ! the earth opened beneath the 
feet of Selfdeceit, and she and her 
flaming torch and her whited garments 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 



6] 



were swallowed up, and I saw them no 
more. Together with the light which 
had caused it, the long deep shadow 
also passed away, and Wayward once 




more looked round him in doubt ; he 
then saw the fate of his companion, and 
uttered a shrill and piercing cry, and, 
in his alarm dropping the cross out 
of his hand, he ran hastily from the 



62 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

wood. But now, alas ! it was too late 
for flight ; the lion, that had lain in 
wait for him there, had already made 
his fatal spring : he seized, on his prey 
and pulled him down upon the ground, 
and in a moment was griping with his 
savage teeth, and tearing to pieces with 
his claws, the companion of Selfdeceit. 




CHAPTER IV 



Refresh us. Lord, to hold it fast . 
And -when Thy veil is drawn at last, 
Let us depart -where shadows cease, 
With words of blessing and of peace. 

had already be- 
gun to mourn 
for Wayward, 
as for one who 
was lost ; for, 
even had he 
been in health 
and vigour, his 
strength would have been but weakness 
against the ferocious animal that was 
devouring him now ; but sickly and 




64 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 



powerless as he had been rendered by 
disease, save by his fearful shrieks he 
could offer no resistance at all. His 
cries for help were becoming fainter and 
fainter, when behold ! there came forth 
from the forest a fair and gentle girl ; 
her garments were almost of a spotless 
white, and yet methought she seemed 
as though she had been long in the 
garden, and the name of "Charity" was 
written on her brow. And I wondered 
at first how she could have wandered 
through that gloomy forest alone, and 
I was alarmed lest the lion that was 
tearing Wayward might turn his fury 
upon her ; but I soon found there was 
cause neither for wonder nor alarm, for 
her cross was in her hand. The sha- 
dow fell full on the forehead of the 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 65 

savage beast, and with a low sullen 
growl he forsook his prey, and crouched 
in servile fear before the little child. 
His eyes glared horribly as he turned 
back, and he kept moving his head to 
and fro, as though he fain would have 
shaken off the holy image ; but his 
struggles to resist its influence were all 
in vain, and step by step he was forced 
to shrink away, and hide himself in the 
darkness of the forest. Then did Cha- 
rity draw nigh to the faint and bleeding 
boy, and bandage his mangled limbs, 
and stanch the blood that was gushing 
copiously from the wounds ; and, as she 
did so, the purple stream that flowed 
upon her garments of white, left no 
stain upon them, but only made them 
brighter -than before. 



66 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

Wayward had had a very narrow 
escape from destruction, and it was a 
long time before he so far came to him- 
self as to be able to stand up. I cannot 
tell what fearful dreams he may have 
had while he was lying prostrate on the 
ground ; but the moment that he arose, 
his first thought was of his cross : he 
felt for it in his bosom, but he found 
that it was not there ; and I shall 
not easily forget the look of anguish 
and despair that was on his face when 
he remembered he had let it fall. He 
threw himself down on the ground, and 
searched very anxiously for the treasure 
he had neglected so long ; but his head 
swam and his sight was dizzy, and he 
looked for it in vain. Nay, it had fallen 
so near the forest, and the grass was 






SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 67 

so loiig, and the bushes so numerous, 
that there was little hope of his recover- 
ing it again ; and yet he now felt that, 
if he found it not, he himself was lost. 
He told Charity of his sad loss, and 
with tears and groans besought her ear- 
nestly to assist him in the search. So 
Charity raised her own cross on high, 
and the dark outline fell on a thick 
bush of furze close by the outskirts 
of the wood ; it was there that the 
cross of Wayward had fallen, and she 
bade the boy call earnestly on his gra- 
cious Father, and advance with a good 
courage, telling him that, though others 
might point out where it was, no hand 
but his own could take it up. Way- 
ward did advance, but it was with fear 
and trembling ; he often raised his eyes 



68 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

timidly towards the forest, as though 
he was afraid lest the Hon might seize 
upon him again : when, too, he stood by 
the bush, and stretched out his hand, it 
was sad to see how the noxious insects 
stung him, and the thorns entered into 
the new-made wounds ; twice in anguish 
did he draw it back ; the second time 
that he did so, a low growl was heard 
issuing from the wood, and then in haste 
he thrust his hand down again, regard- 
less of the pain, and seizing on his lost 
treasure hurried back to the side of 
Charity. 

Now I rejoiced greatly that Way- 
ward had recovered his cross; I was 
glad, too, that the chalk with which 
Selfdeceit had bedaubed his clothes 
was gone, for the red streams of blood 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 69 

had washed it away. Yet still was I 
very sorrowful when I saw how fear- 
fully they were now denied ; it seemed 
that whole rivers of tears would be un- 
able to restore to them any portion of 
their original whiteness, and I could 
not but doubt whether poor Wayward 
might hereafter be recognised as the 
King's child. The same thoughts, too, 
were weighing him down, for he groan- 
ed deeply and was very sorrowful ; and 
then I heard Charity speaking to him 
of the tender mercies of their King and 
Father, and telling him that, if only he 
was able to hold steadfastly for the time 
to come by the cross, and walk care- 
fully in its shadow, he need in no wise 
despair, for, though his own tears could 
not cleanse his garments, there was One 



70 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

who might wash them for him with the 
water of life, so that, though they were 
now as scarlet, they would become as 
white as snow, though they were red 
like crimson, they should be as wool. 
When he heard this, Wayward look- 
ed down upon his cross, but there still 
was very much of sadness in his gaze ; 
he felt in truth that his hand was too 
feeble to hold it steadfastly for the 
time to come, and his eye too dim 
to discern its shadow. But Charity 
again addressed him with words of 
comfort ; she reminded him that they 
were not alone in the garden, and that 
there were means by which, if only he 
would be diligent in employing them, 
his strength and his sight would gradu- 
ally be renewed ; the same kind Father, 



SHADOW OP THE CROSS. 71 

she said, " who has given you the will 
and the power to recover your cross, 
can render it once more the guardian 
of your steps." 

Then did he take comfort, and while 
he feebly raised his cross, methought 
that he earnestly besought his Father 
to restore to him a portion of his former 
strength. 

For some little while Charity walked 
by his side, and gently holding him by 
the hand, guided him safely through 
the snares and stumbling-blocks which 
beset them on their way. But before 
long the warning shadows bade them 
proceed along different paths, that of 
Charity leading her through a smooth 
verdant meadow, that of Wayward fall- 
ing on a rough uneven ground, close 



72 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 



to the border of the wood. So, with 
many a parting warning, and ever, as 
she went, holding on high the sacred 
sign, Charity bade adieu to Wayward, 




and I cannot tell that she ever beheld 
him again. For a moment I watched 
her light graceful form as she passed 
through the pleasant fields : it was, 
indeed, a lovely sight ; the long grass 



" 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 73 

and the flowers appeared to bend as 
she approached, lest they might stain 
the hem of her white garments ; the 
little lambs would come to lick the 
hand which held the cross, and the 
birds sung more tunefully as its sha- 
dow fell upon them. 

But I turned from this pleasing pic- 
ture, for I was anxious to know what 
would become of Wayward now he 
was once more alone ; he too had been 
watching the retreating form of Charity, 
and the tear rose in his eye as he felt 
it was not for him to accompany her 
along the ways of pleasantness and 
peace. He began his solitary journey, 
and I could see that he was strug- 
gling hard to hold firmly by the cross, 
and was inwardly resolving to follow 



74 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

the advice of Charity. But, alas ! that 
which might have been sweet and easy 
once had become a task of much la- 
bour and difficulty now ; for though his 
Father did not suffer his strength or 
sight altogether to fail, he was allowed 
continually to feel the ill effects of his 
former wanderings. His arm grew faint 
and weary when he lifted it on high ; 
and his cross itself would at One time 
glow with a burning heat, and raise 
blisters on his hand ; and at another, 
would become cold as a mass of ice, 
until his numbed fingers could scarce 
retain it in their grasp. Its shadow, 
too, no longer fell on fruits or on flow- 
ers, nor on any thing desirable to the 
eye, but on husks and withered leaves, 
and all the refuse of the earth. I saw, 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 75 

also, that he staggered to and fro as he 
walked along, and that, from his very 
anxiety to place his footsteps right, he 
often stumbled and well nigh fell, and, 
by the continued difficulties of the path, 
he was brought into so great trouble 
and misery, that he went mourning all 
the day long. How strange must he 
now have thought it, that there had 
been a time when he fancied that he 
could walk safely without the aid of 
his cross ! and how often must he have 
wished that it would again afford him 
that clear and distinct shadow, which 
it was wont to shed when first he 
entered the garden ! For even this 
comfort was denied him now. The 
meteor lights which he had allowed to 
accompany him in his wanderings with 



76 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

Selfdeceit still continued to hover around 
him, and kept throwing their deceitful 
shadows on secret poisons and hidden 
snares : many a time did he pause long 
and anxiously, before he could distin- 
guish between the true image and the 
false, and often had he reason to re- 
joice that the real shadow was dark 
and gloomy, because he could the more 
easily discern it. He knew also that 
he had good reason to be alarmed, for 
the roar of the lion that had torn him 
once was ever sounding in his ears ; 
and each time that he hesitated, he fan- 
cied he could perceive his fierce eyes 
glaring upon him from the wood : it 
seemed as though the beast, having once 
marked him for his own, was watching 
every step that he took, and ready in a 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 77 

moment to pounce upon his prey. At 
length the shadow fell upon a pathway 
leading directly into the wood ; Way- 
ward gazed doubtfully upon it a little 
while, but, when he saw that it was the 
true image, with slow and trembling 
steps he contin led to follow it. I soon 
lost sight of him among the trees, so 
that I cannot tell what may have be- 
fallen him there ; but I have a good 
hope that he walked in safety through 
all its dangers, for, though his garments 
were stained with blood, and his limbs 
were faint, and his eyes dim, and though 
the beasts of the forests were howling 
around him, his cross was in his hand. 
Still I was not sorry that I could no 
longer watch him, for it had become 
very painful to me to trace his steps ; 



78 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

not only was there trouble in each path 
that he trod, but there was even much 
to render me sad in the gloomy shadows 
that fell from his cross ; so I suffered 
my eye to wander towards the more 
lovely parts of the garden, in hopes that 
once again it might rest upon Mirth. I 
soon discovered him not far from the 
field in which Wayward had left him ; 
he had altered very little since then, 
except that the cheerfulness of his coun- 
tenance and the buoyancy of his step 
had returned. He was holding his cross 
towards the sun, and his face beamed 
bright with gratitude as he traced its 
outline on the flowers strewed in his 
path. The shadows were not, indeed, 
so light and lovely as those which had 
fallen from the cross of Innocence, yet 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 79 

still they were very beautiful, — more 
beautiful than the fairest flowers on 
which they fell. The garments of 
Mirth had almost recovered their white- 
ness, yet they, too, were not so bright 
and shining as those of Innocence had 
been ; nay, I fancied I could yet trace 
upon them the dim outline of each for- 
mer stain, not only the deeper marks 
that had been caused by his careless 
chase with Wayward, but even the first 
little spot that the falling rose leaf had 
left. The marks were so very faint, 
that while the shadow of the cross rest- 
ed upon them they could not be dis- 
cerned ; but, when they were exposed 
to the clear and brilliant light of the sun, 
1 could see that they still were there. 
" Surely, then," I said within myself, 



^<i SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

" the children whose garments are yet 
unsullied, would run less heedlessly, if 
they knew that their early stains would 
continue with them so long !" Mirth 
was happy now, but he would have 
been far happier if he had never left the 
shadow of his cross ; for there was often 
a momentary expression of sadness on 
his face, when some gay butterfly with 
its golden wings fluttered across his path, 
and brought to his remembrance his for- 
mer wanderings. Yet were his garments 
so white, that it was easy to recognise 
him for the King's child ; and I knew 
that his kind Father would cleanse them 
at last from every spot, and I almost 
longed for the time when the white dove 
might settle on his cross, and Mirth 
should be called away from the garden. 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 81 

Then did my thoughts wander to the 
land to which Innocence was gone, and 
I said in my heart, how glorious must 
that land be in which this same bright 
sun is shining, while all the children 
are clad in raiment of a dazzling white- 
ness ! Tt must be that the cross, which 
is their safeguard here, will there be 
their delight ; they will love for ever to 
watch the holy shadows ; and yet will 
they then require them no more, for in 
that better land there will be neither 
danger in the fields, nor poison in the 
flowers. 

And the still soft Voice replied : "In 
that better land there will be neither 
fields nor flowers such as you now be- 
hold, for the grass withereth, and the 
flower fadeth, but there will be nothing 



82 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

there that can either wither or fade. In 
that better land the cross will indeed 
be the delight of the children, and the 
bright sun will be reflected on their gar- 
ments of dazzling whiteness ; but, when 
raised on high, the cross will cast no 
shadow there ; it will itself shine with 
exceeding lustre, the rays of immortality 
will be shed from it, and all things will 
be filled with light and gladness by its 
pure and living fire." 

Now, while I wondered at this, and 
tried to picture to myself a land lovely 
without fields or flowers, and in which 
the cross might be raised towards the 
sun and yet no shadow be discerned, 
behold ! the vision of the fair garden 
passed away, and I saw no more. 



Qizxts from §olt3 Scripture. 



The fohowing and similar passages of Scripture may 
be impressed on trie minds of children, by point- 
ing oat their connexion with the different parts 
of the Allegory. 



" The sun of righteousness (shall) 
arise with healing in his wings." 1 

" The darkness is past, and the true 
light now shineth." 2 

" That was the true light, which 
lighteth every man that cometh into 
the world." 3 

" Ye are all the children of light, 

F2 



84 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

and the children of the day ; we are not 
of the night, nor of darkness." 4 

" That ye should show forth the 
praises of him, who hath called you out 
of darkness into his marvellous light." 15 

" Except a man be born of water, 
and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into 
the kingdom of God." 6 

" The like figure 'whereunto even 
baptism doth also now save us (not 
the putting away of the filth of the 
flesh, but the answer of a good con- 
science towards God) by the resurrec- 
tion of Jesus Christ." 7 

" God is faithful, who will not suffer 
you to be tempted above that ye are 
able ; but will, with the temptation, also 
make a way to escape, that ye may be 
able to bear it." 8 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 85 

" The Lord is their strength, and he 
is the saving strength of his anointed." 9 

" My grace is sufficient for thee : for my 
strength is made perfect in weakness." 10 

" When that which is perfect is come, 
then that which is in part shall be done 
away." 11 

" I am a stranger with thee, and a 
sojourner, as all my fathers were." 12 

" For they that say such things, de- 
clare plainly that they seek a country." 13 

" But now they desire a better coun- 
try, that is, an heavenly : wherefore God 
is not ashamed to be called their God : 
for he hath prepared for them a city." 14 

" Come, ye blessed of my Father, in- 
herit the kingdom prepared for you from 
the foundation of the world." 15 

" The children of the kingdom shall be 



86 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

cast out into outer darkness ; there shall 
be weeping and gnashing of teeth." 16 " 

"Trust in the Lord with all thine 
heart, and lean not unto thine own un- 
derstanding. In all thy ways acknow- 
ledge him, and he shall direct thy 
paths." 17 

" Her ways are ways of pleasantness, 
and all her paths are peace." 18 

" Yea, though I walk through the 
valley of the shadow of death, I will 
fear no evil : for thou art with me ; thy 
rod and thy staff, they comfort me." 19 

" I heard a voice from heaven, say- 
ing unto me, ' Write, Blessed are the 
dead which die in the Lord, from 
henceforth.'" 20 

" But I would not have you to be 
ignorant, brethren, concerning them 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 87 

which are asleep, that ye sorrow not 
even as others which have no hope." 21 



"It is better to go to the house of 
mourning, than to go to the house of 
feasting, for that is the end of all men, 
and the living will lay it to his heart. 
Sorrow is better tfcan laughter, for by 
the sadness of the countenance the 
heart is made better." 22 

" Whom the Lord loveth he chasten- 
eth, and scourgeth every son whom he 
receiveth." 23 

" Enter not into the path of the 
wicked, and go not into the way of 
evil men." 24 

" There is a way that seemeth right 



88 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

unto a man, but the end thereof are 
the ways of death." 25 

" As for me, my feet were almost 
gone, my steps had well nigh slipped ; 
for I was envious at the foolish, when 
I saw the prosperity of the wicked." 26 

" The way of the wicked is as dark- 
ness ; they know not at what they stum- 

bl 



"27 



" Before 1 was afflicted, I went astray, 
but now have I kept thy word." 28 

"Let thine eyes look right on, and 
let thine eyelids look straight before 
thee. Ponder the path of thy feet, and 
let all thy ways be established. Turn 
not to the right hand, nor to the left : 
remove thy foot from evil." 29 

" Now I rejoice not that ye were 
made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to re- 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 89 

pentance : for ye were made sorry after 
a godly manner, that ye might receive 
damage by us in nothing. For godly 
sorrow worketh repentance to salvation, 
not to be repented of: but the sorrow 
of the world worketh death." 30 

" Blessed are they that mourn, for 
they shall be comforted." 31 



" A double-minded man is unstable 
in all his ways." 32 

So they did eat and were well filled ; 
for he gave them their own desire ; 
they were not estranged from their lust. 
But while their meat was yet in their 
mouths, the wrath of God came upon 
them." 33 



90 SHADOW OF THE CROPS. 

" Take heed, brethren, lest there be 
in any of you an evil heart of unbelief 
in departing from the living God. But 
exhort one another daily while it is call- 
ed to-day, lest any of you be hardened 
through the deceitfulness of sin." 34 

" In whom the god of this world hath 
blinded the minds of them which believe 
not, lest the light of the glorious gospel 
of Christ, who is the image of God, 
should shine unto them." 35 

" For such are false apostles, deceitful 
workers, transforming themselves into 
the apostles of Christ. And no marvel, 
for Satan himself is transformed into an 
angel of light." 36 

" Hypocrites ! for ye are like unto 
whited sepulchres, which indeed appear 
beautiful outward, but are within full 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 91 

of dead men's bones, and of all un- 
cleanness. Even so, ye also outwardly 
appear righteous unto men, but within, 
ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity." 37 

" The way of peace they know not, 
and there is no judgment in their 
goings : they have made them crooked 
paths ; whosoever goeth therein, shall 
not know peace." 38 

" Woe unto them that call evil good, 
and good evil ; that put darkness for 
light, and light for darkness ; that put 
bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter." 39 

" For many walk of whom I hav 
told you often, and now tell you even 
weeping, that they are the enemies of 
the cross of Christ, whose end is de- 
struction." i0 

" When your fear cometh as desolation, 



92 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

and your destruction cometh as a whirl 
wind, when distress and anguish cometh 
upon you, then shall they call upon me, 
but I will not answer : they shall seek 
me early, but they shall not find me." 41 
" Then shall two be in the field ; the 
one shall be taken, and the other left." 42 



" To the Lord our God belong mer- 
cies and forgivenesses, though we have 
rebelled against him ; neither have we 
obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, 
to walk in his laws which he set before 
us." 43 

" Brethren, if any of you do err 
from the truth, and one convert him, 
let him know that he which converteth 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 93 

the sinner from the error of his way 
shall save a soul from death, and shall 
hide a multitude of sins." 44 

" Woe unto us that we have sinned ! 
for this our heart is faint ; for these 
things our eyes are dim." 45 

" If any man will come after me, let 
him deny himself, and take up his cross 
and follow me. For what is a man 
profited if he shall gain the whole 
world, and lose his own soul ? or what 
shall a man give in exchange for his 
soul?" 46 

" They that turn many to righteous- 
ness, (shall shine) as the stars for ever 
and ever." 47 

" There is no soundness in my flesh 
because of thine anger ; neither is there 
any rest in my bones because of my sin. 



94 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

For mine iniquities are gone over mine 
head as an heavy burden, they are too 
heavy for me ; my wounds stink and 
are corrupt, because of my foolishness. 
I am troubled, I am bowed down great- 
ly ; I go mourning all the day long." 43 

" Wash me throughly from mine ini- 
quity, and cleanse me from my sin ; for 
I acknowledge my transgressions, and 
my sin is ever before me." 49 

" The sacrifices of God are a broken 
spirit ; a broken and a contrite heart, 
O God, thou wilt not despise. 50 

"For the Lord will not cast off for 
ever : but though he cause grief, yet 
will he have compassion according to 
the multitude of his mercies." 51 

" Mark the perfect man, and behold the 
upright, for the end of that man is peace." 52 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 95 

" If thou, O Lord, shouldst mark ini- 
quities, O Lord, who shall stand. ? but 
there is forgiveness with thee, that thou 
mayest be feared." 53 

" And. he carried me away in the 
spirit, to a great and high mountain, 
and shewed, me that great city, the ho- 
ly Jerusalem, descending out of heaven 
from God, having the glory of God : and 
her light was like unto a stone most 
precious, even like unto a jasper stone 
clear as crystal." 54 

" And I heard a great voice out of 
heaven, saying, Behold the tabernacle 
of God is with men, and he will dwell 
with them, and they shall be his people, 
and God himself shall be with them, 
and be their God. And God shall wipe 
away all tears from their eyes ; and 



96 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 



there shall be no more death, neither 
sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there 
be any more pain, for the former things 
are passed away." 65 



l Mai. iv. 2. 


19 Psalm xxiii. 4. 


38 


tsa. lix. 3. 


2 1 John ii. 8. 


20 Rev. xiv. 13. 


39 


Isa. v. 20. 


3 John i. 9. 


21 1 Thess. iv. 13. 


40 


Phil. iii. 18, 19. 


i 1 Thess. v. 5. 


22 Eccl. vii. 2, 3. 


41 


Prov. i. 27, 23. 


5 1 Pet. ii. 9. 


23 Heb. xii. 6. 


42 


Matt. xxiv. 40. 


6 John iii. 5. 


24 prov. iv. 14. 


43 


Dan.ix. 9, 10. 


7 1 Peter iii. 21. 


25 Prov. xvi. 25. 


44 


James v. 19, 20. 


8 1 Cor. x. 13. 


26 Psalm lxxiii. 2, 3. 


45 


Lam. v. 16, 17. 


9 Psalm xxviii. S. 


27 Prov. v. 19. 


46 


Matt. xvi. 24, 26. 


10 2 Cor. xii. 9. 


28 Psalm cxix. 67. 


47 


Dan. xii. 3. 


11 1 Cor. xiii. 10. 


29 Prov. iv. 25, 26, 27 


48 


Ps. xxxviii. 3, 4, 5, 6. 


12 Psalm xxxix. 12 


30 2 Cor. vii. 9, 10. 


49 


Psalm li. 2, 3. 


13 Heb. xi. 14. 


31 Matt. v. 4. 


50 


Psalm li. 17. 


u Heb. xi. 16. 


32 James i. S. 


51 


Lam. iii. 31, 32. 


15 Matt. xxv. 34. 


S3 p s . lxxviii. 29, 31. 


52 


Psalm xxxvii. 37. 


16 Matt. viii. 12. 


34 Heb. iii. 12, 13. 


53 


Ps. cxxx. 3, 4. 


17 Prov. iii. 5, 6. 


35 2 Cor. iv. 4. 


54 


Rev. xxi. 10, 11. 


18 Prov. iii. 17 


36 2 Cor. xi. 13, 14. 

37 Matt, xxiii. 27, 29 


55 


Rev. xxi. 3, 4. 



T H JE END. 



CONVERSATIONS 


ON 


THE SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 


BY THE REV. W. ADAMS. M. A. 


FROM THE LONDON EDITION 


NEW-YORK: 


GENERAL PROT. EPISCOPAL S. S. UNION, 


DANIEL DANA Jr. AGENT 


Depository 20 Jolin Street 


1849 



r 2 - 



CONVERSATIONS 



&fte Sfiattoto of the (Eross. 



CHAPTER I 



(El. What is signified by the bright and 
glorious sun that appeared in the east ? 

31. Jesus Christ our Lord. 

<JH. Yes ; he is spoken of as the 
" Sun of Righteousness" by the prophet 
Malachi. And the beautiful garden on 
which its rays fell, is the kingdom that 
our Lord established upon earth ; now, 
why is that kingdom represented as 
surrounded by a silver stream ? 



4 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

Qi. Because it is through the water 
of baptism that we enter it. 

(©. Do you remember how this was 
typified in the history of the children 
of Israel ? 

31. Yes ; you explained to me in the 
Baptismal Service, that it was by the 
passage through the Red Sea. The 
words there, I think, are, " Who didst 
safely lead the children of Israel through 
the Red Sea, figuring thereby thy holy 
baptism." 

<&. You can, then, tell me on which 
side of the stream you were born. 

&. In the land of darkness ; for I 
was born in sm, and a child of wrath. 

(&. And when you were baptized, 
you were cleansed from your sin, and 
carried, as it were, through the clear 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. O 

stream in your garment of white, with 
your little cross in your hand. As soon 
as you thus entered the garden, you 
were made a member of Christ. Who, 
then, became your Father, and what 
inheritance was promised you ? 

St. Heaven was my inheritance, and 
God became my Father ; for, at the 
same time that I was made a member 
of Christ, I became also a child of 
God, and an inheritor of the kingdom 
of heaven. 

(k. Why are we told that neither 
the sight nor the strength of the chil- 
dren was their own ? 

Qt. Because we can do nothing ex- 
cept through the influence of the Holy 
Ghost. 

<&. Why is it said that the children 



6 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

received these precious gifts as they 
crossed the stream ? 

%. Because it is at our baptism that 
we receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. 

(&. What, then, is signified by the 
constant renewal of their sight and 
strength ? 

31. The being daily renewed by the 
Holy Spirit of God. 

(fit. And how must we seek for such 
renewal ? 

31. By prayer. 

(St. Yes ; and by Holy Communion, 
and all the other means of grace which 
God has appointed to refresh and sup- 
port the Christian in his daily walk. 
What is meant by the children being 
placed in the garden, in order to pre- 
pare them for their Father's presence ? 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 7 

9L That the Christian is to endea- 
vour so to live in the present world, 
that hereafter he may be thought wor- 
thy to be with God for ever. 

<&. How were the children to prepare 
themselves ? 

St. They were to keep their garments 
white, and hold fast their crosses. 

<&. In the same way, then, each one 
of us must prepare himself for heaven, 
by abstaining from sin and impurity, 
and holding fast the profession of Christ. 
Can you tell me how the sign of the cross 
is spoken of in the Baptismal Service ? 

21. As a token that hereafter we shall 
not be ashamed to confess the faith of 
Christ crucified, and manfully to fight 
under his banner, against sin, the world, 
and the devil, and to continue Christ's 



8 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

faithful soldiers and servants unto our 
life's end. 

(Si. How are sin, the world, and the 
devil represented in the allegory? 

31. They are the poisons, the snares, 
the serpents, and the other dangers of 
the garden. 

(Si. Tou are right. But, instead of 
fighting against them ? we are here, 
under a different image, represented as 
passing safely through them by means 
of the shadow of the cross. What will 
be the fate of those unhappy children 
who neglect that safeguard? 

31. When they leave the garden, they 
will never again behold the glorious 
Sun, but they will be cast into outer 
darkness, where there shall be weeping 
and gnashing of teeth. 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 9 

(Si. Such in another world will be the 
punishment of the faithless followers of 
Christ. But now tell me how it was 
that, while the children were in the 
garden, there was so much variety in 
the shadows that fell from different 
crosses ? 

91. Is it because religion seems a 
bright and cheerful thing to some, while 
it is sad and gloomy to others ? 

(Si. It is so. God has ordained that 
Christianity should shed, as it were, a 
different complexion on different minds, 
and that the course, which is easy and 
natural to one disposition, should be 
hard and laborious to another. There 
is one great cause of this variety, that 
will be explained in the following part 
of the allegory. You will find that 



10 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

those children who neglected for a time 
to consult their crosses, afterwards found 
it a very difficult task to tread in their 
shadow ; for though we are told that 
the ways of wisdom are, in themselves, 
ways of pleasantness, and that all her 
paths are peace, the return to them is 
always by a hard way and rugged path. 

Qi. Little Innocence found them 
peaceful and pleasant, because she 
always continued there. 

(&. She did so for the short time 
she remained in the garden. You know 
what is meant by her fading away? 

Qt. She was taken to heaven. 

(fit. And by the shadow that still 
seemed to fall from her cross ? 

Qt. The remembrance that she left 
upon the earth. 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 11 

(Si. Yes. There is an almost sacred 
feeling with which we regard every 
thing connected with those little ones 
who have lived and died in the Lord. 
The shadow of their cross may indeed 
be said to rest on each innocent amuse- 
ment and occupation that they have 
loved ; and the images from other 
crosses will cluster around it, for no 
soil is more kindly to good and holy 
resolutions than the remembrance of 
departed friends : " to be with them 
is to be with Christ." There are affec- 
tions and sympathies which are fixed 
upon them during their lives, which by 
their deaths it often pleases God to 
draw towards Himself. 



CHAPTER n. 



<&. Why was it that Mirth was safe 
while he remained where he had been 
playing with Innocence ? . 

91. Because, as you have already 
said, when we think of companions and 
friends that are gone, our own hearts 
are drawn more closely to our Saviour. 

<&. As soon as he left that field, 
what was the particular danger of 
Mirth ? 

91. He was too fond of pleasure. 

<&. Yes ; however anxious we may 
be to follow the cross, if we care too 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 13 

much for that which is pleasant, we 
shall be likely to err ; for good and evil 
grow so close together m this world, 
that, unless we look quietly and care- 
fully, we shall not always be able to 
distinguish between them. How is this 
shown in the allegory ? 

%. By the beautiful bed of flowers, 
from which Mirth, in his haste, gather- 
ed a rose, on which the shadow did 
not fall. 

<&. What is the sting of the wasp ? 

%. The pain caused by sin. 

(©. What the mark of the rose leaf? 

%. The stain left by sin. 

(fit. When Mirth met Wayward, we 
are told that the cross of the latter 
was not in his hand : what is meant 
by this ? 



14 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

2L He was not trying to hold fast 
his Christian profession. 

(Si. Had he, then, altogether re- 
nounced the service of Christ ? 

Qt. No, for he still said he kept the 
cross, though he did not use it. 

®. Well, then, he thought that in 
trifling matters he might please him- 
self, provided he abstained from great 
and notorious offences. He merely de- 
signed to use his cross now and then, 
and forgot that it was intended to 
guide him every moment that he conti- 
nued in the garden. What had already 
been the sad consequence of this negli- 
gence ? 

21. He had really committed many 
sins, though he might consider them to 
be trivial, or not sins at all ; for there 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 15 

were spots and stains on all parts of 
his clothes. 

(&. What was the effect of Mirth's 
joining him ? 

31. His clothes also soon lost their 
whiteness, for the two boys fell into a 
swamp together. 

(£X. What do we learn from this ? 

31. The danger of joining in the 
pursuits of those who talk lightly of 
religion, and do not profess in all things 
to be guided by the cross. 

(&. What is afterwards signified by 
the discontent of Mirth, when he was 
not able to do as Wayward did ? 

21. Envy at the pleasures that the 
wicked seem to enjoy. 

(&. Yes. And such envy is not only 
very sinful in itself, but also, if we in- 



16 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

dulge it, is sure to lead us to share in 
their unlawful pursuits. How is this 
shown in the allegory ? 

31. By the chase after the beautiful 
butterfly, in which Mirth united with 
Wayward without consulting his cross. 

(Si. How was it that this chase led the 
boys so much farther than they expected ? 

91. Because, when we begin to fol- 
low an unlawful pleasure, we cannot be 
aware of all the sin and sorrow through 
which it will lead us. 

<£}. Did the children get possession 
of the butterfly at last ? 

91. No, they gave it up in conse- 
quence of the stumble of Mirth. 

(Si. Why did that cause them to 
give it up ? 

91. It led Mirth to consult his cross, 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 17 

and then he saw that its shadow fell in 
an opposite direction. 

(fli. Yes. And often thus, by an un- 
expected stumble, it pleases God to 
check the sinner in his heedless course, 
and to awaken him to a sense of his 
danger. What is signified by the ser- 
pent concealed under the myrtle? 

21. Satan was lying in wait to take 
advantage of their sin. 

(Si. What was the hard dull path by 
which the children began to return ? 

21. The path of repentance. 

(Hi. And the withered leaves and 
faded flowers are the recollection 01 
opportunities neglected and blessings 
forfeited, which are always strewed 
along it. What is signified by the re- 
turn to the field of Innocence ? 



18 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

Qt. Mirth was led to think of the 
happy days that in their childhood they 
had passed together, and of the quiet 
life, and above all, of the tranquil and 
holy death of his former friend. 

<&. How did these thoughts at first 
affect him ? 

%. He wept more bitterly than before. 

(fit. He did so, for -there is nothing 
that causes the tears of repentance to 
flow more freely, than to go back in 
thought to days of peace and purity, 
and to reflect on the change that sin 
may have produced in our condition 
since those whom we once loved have 
been taken away. But did Mirth rest 
satisfied with tears alone ? 

%,. No ; for his sorrow led him to 
pray very earnestly to his Father. 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 19 

(&. And the consequence of this 
was, that he soon felt happy, while 
he traced the mark of the cross on the 
faded flower of Innocence. And so 
it is written, " Blessed are they that 
mourn, for they shall be comforted." 
To what did Mirth ascribe his present 
comfort, and his escape from danger ? 

21. He ascribed every thing to the 
little cross he had been enabled to hold 
m his hand. 

CI. And that is intended to remind 
us that we can do nothing of ourselves 
to help ourselves. It is the special grace 
of God that points out to the sinner the 
error of his way, and guides him along 
the path of repentance, and at length 
vouchsafes to him pardon and peace. 



CHAPTER III 



<flt. How was it that Wayward did 
not continue in the same field with 
Mirth ? 

91. Because he no longer watched the 
shadow of the cross. 

(&, That is to say, though he appear- 
ed to be following the same course with 
his companion, he did not in truth re- 
semble him ; for he made no real effort 
to regulate each thought, word, and 
deed, by the rule of his Christian pro- 
fession. But when he first missed him, 
did he endeavour to join him again ? 



SHADOAV OF THE CROSS. 21 

%. He was very anxious to do so, 
and yet could not resolve to consult 
his cross. 

(&. Yes ; and so he afterwards wish 
ed to play with those children whose 
garments were still white. Now, what 
does this signify ? 

2L That sinners who are not yet 
hardened feel a sort of security in seem- 
ing to follow the same occupations with 
good men. 

(JH. Did Wayward succeed in this 
wish ? 

2i. No. On the contrary, he began 
to play with the boys who had no 
crosses, and garments more filthy than 
his own. 

CI. And what does that signify ? 

Qt. Careless Christians are often 



22 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

forced into the company of those who 
have advanced farther along the paths 
of destruction than themselves. 

<&. What were the fruits and flowers 
which afterwards so discoloured the gar- 
ments of Wayward, and rendered him 
sickly and pale ? 

2i. They were the idle pursuits and 
pleasures in which in mere thoughtless- 
ness he indulged. 

(fit. What is signified by his longing 
for the nectarine on the western wall ? 

31. A desire which he could not help 
knowing was sinful, but which he still 
sought some excuse to gratify. 

<©. And did he find any such ex- 
cuse ? 

Qt. Yes ; it was afforded him by the 
false lights that were in the garden, 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 23 

and the cross that was held by Self- 
deceit. 

<&. Who was it that placed the false 
lights in the garden ? 

21. Satan, the enemy of the King, 
who is able to transform himself into 
an angel of light. 

(Si. What was the state of Selfdeceit ? 

21. She had become so very bad, that 
she could no longer distinguish between 
good and evil. 

(Si. Yes, it was that state which is 
called judicial blindness. And remem- 
ber that we all are liable to be brought 
into it, by resisting the Holy Spirit of 
God. If we persist in desiring what we 
know to be wrong, we shall soon endea- 
vour to think it right, and then Satan 
will half convince us that it is so, and 



24 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

our understanding will be gradually- 
darkened, and we shall become hard- 
ened and impenitent ; then the cross of 
Christ will become to us of no effect. 
Such you may remember was the con- 
dition of the Jewish people, when the 
day of their visitation was passed, and 
they thought they were doing an action 
well pleasing to God in crucifying their 
Saviour. Did Wayward fall into that 
miserable state ? 

Si, Not entirely ; for, though he 
yielded to the persuasion of Selfde- 
ceit, his heart was always full of sor- 
row and fear. 

(&. What was that crimson stain 
which the juice of the nectarine left 
upon his clothes ? 

Si, That deep and fearful mark which 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 25 

is produced by a wilful and deliberate 
act of sin. 

(fit. What is signified by the chalk 
that Selfdeceit persuaded him to em- 
ploy ? 

2L He endeavoured to hide from him- 
self and from others the consequence of 
his sin. 

(&. Yes. He assumed that white 
covering, which makes all outwardly 
appear well, while there is nothing but 
rottenness within. Such we know to 
have been the state of the Scribes and 
Pharisees in the time of our Saviour. 

21. I remember that he himself de- 
clares they were but " whited sepul- 
chres." 

(&. What do we learn from the 
numerous spots and stains that after- 



26 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

wards broke out on Wayward and Self- 
deceit ? 

3i. That our sins will increase upon 
us, in proportion as we endeavour to 
keep them out of sight. 

(Si. What is signified by the edge 
of the forest at which Wayward again 
consulted his cross ? 

31. It was one of those important 
occasions on which he did endeavour 
to act rightly. 

(fit. How then was it that he con- 
sulted it in vain ? 

31. Because he had so long neglected 
it, and been contented with watching 
the false shadows. 

(Si. He experienced that doubt and 
perplexity which is the consequence of 
sin unrepented of. And was the dim- 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 27 

ness of his sight in any way to be attri- 
buted to himself? 

&. Yes ; it must have been entirely 
owing to his own neglect ; for we are 
told that the sight of those children 
would never grow dim who used the 
means that their Father had appointed 
for preserving it. 

<©. What is signified by Selfdeceit 
holding a false light behind him ? 

&. She endeavoured by wicked and 
lying arguments to overcome the fear- 
fulness of Wayward, and lead him to 
continue in his sinful course. 

(Si. And, by doing so, she acted the 
part of the first tempter of mankind. 
The earth opening and swallowing her 
up, is designed to represent the fearful 
judgment which even in this life some- 



28 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

times overtakes the sinner. What effect 
had this judgment upon her companion ? 

Qt. He ran hastily away, but as' he 
did so he dropped his cross, and was 
seized by the Hon out of the forest. 

(&. Who is signified by the lion ? 

Qt. " Our adversary, the devil, who 
goeth about as a roaring Hon, seeking 
whom he may devour." 

(&. And what is meant by dropping 
the cross ? 

21. Abandoning the faith of Christ. 

COt. The sudden consciousness of his 
danger will often cause the sinner to 
fall away altogether from the faith, and, 
as it were, to give himself over to the 
power of Satan. Such would appear to 
nave been the case of Judas Iscariot, 
wnen he went out and hanged himself, 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 29 

after he had betrayed his Lord : instead 
of that repentance which would have led 
him onward to hope, he felt only the 
agony of that remorse which brought 
him into the depth of despair. Re- 
member, then, that it is possible to be 
aroused too late to a sense of the fearful 
consequences of sin. 



CHAPTER TV 



(Si. How was Wayward released from 
his perilous condition ? 

31-. Charity came with her white gar- 
ments from the wood, a'nd drove away 
the beast that was devouring him. 

(St. Did she do so by her own 
strength ? 

21. No ; but by the shadow which 
fell from the cross which she was ena- 
bled to hold in her hand. 

(Si. We learn, then, from this, that, 
though man may be made the instru- 
ment of rescuing the sinner from the 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 31 

power of Satan, it is only by means of 
the cross of Christ that he is able to do 
so. What is signified by Charity bind- 
ing the mangled limbs and stanching 
the blood? 

21. Praying for the sinner, and of- 
fering him the hope of pardon by the 
comforting promises of the gospel. 

<fii. What effect upon the garments 
of Charity had the purple stream that 
flowed from the wounds of Wayward ? 

21. It only rendered them brighter 
than before. 

<&. Yes ; for if we seek the company 
of sinners, with a sincere desire to lead 
them into the ways of life, our minds 
will not be polluted by their wicked- 
ness, but our very efforts to save them 
will, by the grace of God, be a means 



32 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

of keeping ourselves unspotted from 
the world. How is this declared in 
the conclusion of the Epistle of St. 
James ? 

£C. "He which converteth the sinner 
from the error of his way, shall save a 
soul from death, and shall hide a mul- 
titude of sins." 

<&. And it is probably with a similar 
allusion that St. Peter -tells us, "that 
charity shall cover the multitude of 
sins." What is signified by Wayward 
seeking in vain for the cross he had 
dropped ? 

£1* He knew not how to turn himself 
towards God, until Charity pointed out 
to him the way. 

<B,. But why is it said that no hand 
but his own could take up the cross ? 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 33 

Qt. Because other men cannot repent 
for us. They can only show us what 
we are to do, but we must act for 
ourselves. 

<&. Yes ; the sinner will alwa} r s find 
he must take up his own cross to fol- 
low Christ ; none can bear it for him. 
But what is signified by the thorns and 
noxious insects that caused him twice 
to draw back his hand ? 

QL They are the bitter pains of re- 
morse, the doubtfulness and the other 
thoughts of anguish, which attend our 
first struggle to set ourselves free from 
long-continued sin. 

031. What is meant by his recovery 
of the cross ? 

21. He was led by the grace of God 
to turn for mercy to the cross of Christ, 



34 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

and once more to rest his hopes on the 
privileges he had received in baptism. 

(Si. And did this at once remove all 
his fearfulness and alarm ? 

2i. No ; for we are told that he 
groaned very deeply when he saw how 
his white garments had been defiled. 

(Si. How did Charity afford him com- 
fort ? 

Ql. She reminded him that there was 
One who was both able and willing to 
cleanse them for him. 

(Si. To whom does this refer ? 

9L To the Lord Jesus Christ, who 
will wash away the stain of sin from 
those who believe in Him, by the pre- 
cious blood that He shed upon the cross. 

(Si. But was the fearfulness of Way- 
ward caused by the past alone ? 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 35 

%l. He feared for the future also ; 
for he became more and more conscious 
of the infirmity and blindness that had 
been caused by his long neglect. 

(JH. How did Charity again afford him 
comfort ? 

Qt. She reminded him of the conti- 
nual presence of their Father, and the 
means that He had appointed for the 
renewal of their strength and sight. 

(Si. Yes ; and we may consider Way- 
ward as employing those means, when 
he sorrowed for the past, and besought 
his Father to restore to him a portion 
of his former strength. Why is he 
represented as not continuing long with 
Charity ? 

9Si. Because the returning sinner, 
even though his penitence be sincere, 






36 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

must not expect to tread the same 
pleasant paths with those who from 
their youth up have been mindful of 
their God. 

(&. What is signified by the grass and 
the flowers bending at the approach of 
Charity ? 

21. Wherever she went she was at- 
tended by purity and peace. 

(JU. Yes. It again reminds us that 
her occupation was the conversion of 
sinners. It was this that rendered her 
garments bright, for it is written, " They 
that turn many to righteousness, shall 
shine as the stars for ever and ever." 
What is signified by the weariness of 
the arm of Wayward, and his staggering 
on the way? 

21. That, even after the sinner has 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 37 

begun a course of repentance, he will 
find great difficulty in continuing therein. 

(&. Where have we this difficulty 
most fully described ? 

21. In the penitential Psalms of 
David, who seljs of himself, that " he 
was brought into so great trouble and 
misery, that he went mourning all the 
day long." 

(&. What do you understand by the 
burning heat and the icy coldness of 
the cross that Wayward held ? 

21. Even while he tries to hold fast 
his faith in Christ, the mind of the 
penitent is sometimes too much elated 
by presumptuous hopes, and sometimes 
too much cast down by despair. 

CI. What were the false lights ? 

Qi. The delusions that in some sort 



38 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

still continued, as a consequence of his 
former sin. 

(D. Why is he said to have rejoiced 
in the gloominess of the shadows ? 

%'. Because the sincere penitent can 
often see most clearly the path of duty 
by means of the sacrifices it requires 
of him. 

(©. What was the roar of the lion 
that he always continued to hear ? 

21. He felt that Satan, into whose 
power he had once fallen, would ever 
be upon the watch to seize upon him 
again. 

<5H. Yes. And in the same way our 
Saviour warns us that the evil spirit, 
when it has gone out of a man, will 
return again with seven other spirits 
more wicked than itself, and endeavour 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 39 

to gain possession of its former home. 
Did Wayward finally escape his snares ? 

Qi. It is left in uncertainty. 

(&. It is so. When we lose sight 
of him he is doing well ; and we trust 
that God may be pleased to accomplish 
the good work that He has begun in 
him : but our hope can never be un- 
mingled with alarm. New trials and 
new dangers ever keep springing up 
under his feet, as a consequence of his 
former wanderings ; and each step that 
he advances we are fearful lest he may 
fall. Let us now return to Mirth : what 
do we learn from the contrast his con- 
dition affords ? 

Qi. The comparatively peaceful end of 
those, who, though they may have lived 
carelessly a little while, still in the days 



40 CONVERSATIONS ON THE 

of their youth came back to the ways of 
virtue, and endeavour afterwards, by 
God's grace, to continue therein. 

<SX. But does it not also warn us of 
the danger of the faults of childhood 
and the follies of j r outh, by showing us 
that our after-years will in some sort 
bear upon them the mark of each early 
wandering ? 

%. Yes ; for the stain even of the 
rose-leaf might be seen on the white 
garments of Mirth, and there was sad- 
ness on his countenance when a but- 
terfly with its golden wings flew across 
his path. 

(&X. How then is that stain and how 
is that sorrow to be removed ? 

Qi. If we hold fast the cross, the 
blood of the Lord Jesus will cleanse 



SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 41 

us from all sin, and wipe away all 
tears from our faces hereafter. 

<&. Why is it, that, in the garden, 
the cross is always spoken of as casting 
a shadow ? 

21. Because religion seems to take 
away their brightness from the various 
objects that we desire in this world. 

(&. Yes. Our Christian profession 
may truly be represented as throwing 
a continual shadow on our present ex- 
istence. The cross of Christ has not 
greatly changed the pleasures and occu- 
pations of mankind, but it gives them 
all a complexion of its own ; and thus, 
while in truth it renders them better 
and more lovely than before, it robs 
them of the false colouring with which 
Satan is wont to invest them: for they 



/ 

42 SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

have no longer that glare and brilliancy 
which proves so attractive to the eye of 
man. In another and happier world, 
the false colouring will no longer exist, 
the cross itself will be all in all, and 
therefore it will cast no shadow there. 
In another and happier world those little 
children who have held their crosses to 
the end and followed faithfully the sha- 
dows of them, whether they have been 
for very many years or only for a few 
hours in the garden, whether they have 
trodden the hard way of repentance, or 
the peaceful and pleasant paths, whether 
the images that have guided them have 
been gloomy and dull, or soft and beau- 
tiful, will all once more be united toge- 
ther, and enjoy perpetual rest and felicity 
in the. presence of their Saviour. 



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